Help, Is my 19 Too Far Out of Spec?

[midnighthammer]

19-3. When holding the cylinder back, a feeler gauge measures .018. Is that too much of a gap? When holding the cylinder forward I get .01. So .008 endshake. I have some washers to fix endshake, but is the barrel to cylinder gap too large? I read on another old thread .009 is about as much gap you want between the cylinder and forcing cone Should I sell this? I’ve never fired it.

 

[CH4]

A buddy had 19 with a B/C gap about the same as yours, he just kept shooting it without any issues - mostly .38s I believe.

 

[midnighthammer]

I would be shooting mostly .38.
Just measured a 28-2 and got .005 back /.004 pushed forward. Feels like a bank vault in comparison.
What’s funny is that 19 is really nice looking and the 28 is rougher and former police. I guess it’s that n frame toughness

 

[Nightowl]

That is a lot. About .006 is recommended with spec being about .004 to .12. It used to be up to .008 but I believe the factory has relaxed their specification. I would not be surprised to get a lot of blowback from firing that much of a gap. I would speculate that it came from the factory that way.

If it were mine, and I was going to shoot it, I would have it fixed. Most likely by the factory.

 

[midnighthammer]

Ok, I will dump it. Don’t feel like paying to adjust it.

 

[F75gunslinger]

Before getting rid of it you might try calling S&W and seeing what they can do for you.

 

[series guy]

I would stop reading and start shooting. Guns on the tight side of the specs like to hang up when you get a little lead or fouling on the front of the cylinder. Loose guns not so much. It's the timing and lock up that are more important.

 

[Dieseltech56]

I would be shooting mostly .38.
Just measured a 28-2 and got .005 back /.004 pushed forward. Feels like a bank vault in comparison.
What’s funny is that 19 is really nice looking and the 28 is rougher and former police. I guess it’s that n frame toughness

Handling marks are no indication of how much a gun was shot. I bet if you looked at the barrel face of the OP's gun you would be able to tell that is has been shot a lot. Barrel face erosion is what opens up the gap. Wear on the yoke face is what causes endshake. Neither happen by just carrying a gun around in a holster

 

[midnighthammer]

Here are some pictures

 

[Dieseltech56]

For sure barrel face erosion. See the beveled edge from the barrel face to the forcing cone? It's caused by the flame and little bits of powder that escape the gap when firing the gun. I have passed up a lot of guns because of this. I can't say for sure if it's related directly to number of shots or if it's mostly from shooting hot magnum ammo.

 

[ispcapt]

Nope, there's no erosion. And no wear on the recoil shield. A lot of hot loads will show wear marks on the recoil shield. It was just manufactured with looser tolerance.
series guy is correct. As long as you're getting good primer hits just shoot it. If it bothers you then shim it.

 

[midnighthammer]

Thanks. I guess I will shim the cylinder and tighten up the end shake, then try it out. I did inquire with Smith and Wesson about the tolerances. The last thing I would want to happen would be sending it in and them not giving it back and replacing with a new one. I either want a P&R or non-mim lock free at the very least, or no 19 at all.

 

[Dieseltech56]

Nope, there's no erosion.

Please explain to me what this is then.

 

[Hapworth]

.018" b-c gap is significant, but if you're indexing properly and not getting any spitting or blow-back, you're really just losing some velocity -- not a big deal if range toy.

.008" endshake is past spec, too, but if you're only shooting mild .38s, it won't batter much.

Point is, depends on how it's shooting and your intended use.

If you sell, hopefully you'll disclose.

 

[midnighthammer]

.018" b-c gap is significant, but if you're indexing properly and not getting any spitting or blow-back, you're really just losing some velocity -- not a big deal if range toy.

.008" endshake is past spec, too, but if you're only shooting mild .38s, it won't batter much.

Point is, depends on how it's shooting and your intended use.

If you sell, hopefully you'll disclose.

If I sell I will try to do so locally and let the buyer inspect all they want. I bought it on Gun Broker and didn't have that luxury. Lesson learned.

 

[Dieseltech56]

Hard to tell from the pics but how long is the barrel?

 

[midnighthammer]

Hard to tell from the pics but how long is the barrel?

It's a 4" barrel

 

[Bumpus13]

Ok, I will dump it. Don’t feel like paying to adjust it.

Since you’re not planning on disclosing the problem to potential buyers ...

Enjoy your future karma. Hopefully, your next dozen guns are lemons.

 

[midnighthammer]

Since you’re not planning on disclosing the problem to potential buyers ...

Enjoy your future karma. Hopefully, your next dozen guns are lemons.

Thanks for wishing for more misfortune my way.
I said that I was going to sell locally so someone can inspect it and see if they want it. I could be a dick and put it on Gun Broker, like happened to me.

 

[Hapworth]

Thanks for wishing for more misfortune my way.
I said that I was going to sell locally so someone can inspect it and see if they want it. I could be a dick and put it on Gun Broker, like happened to me.

What you're saying is you'll let a potential buyer figure it out for themselves but you won't tell them what you already know up front.

Bumpus13 shouldn't wish ill on you, but the sentiment is understandable given that in this case you're willing to knowingly pass along trouble to an unsuspecting buyer.

It's unethical and largely frowned upon on the forum, where many of the transactions require elements of trust, and reputation is important.

I don't blame you for frustration in receiving an out-of-spec piece -- we've all been there if we've been at this long enough and it's lousy. But if you don't like it done to you, you don't do it to anyone else, and "not selling it on Gunbroker" isn't enough.

And to be fair to your seller, they may not have known -- but you do -- and this is why for many of us if an inspection period with full refund if unsatisfied isn't part of the deal going in, it's a pass.

What did the seller do when you contacted them regarding your dissatisfaction?

Anyway, fix it and enjoy, or sell it with full disclosure, take a "cost to repair" hit on the price and call it lesson learned without lowering yourself.